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Robert Blackson, Director of Temple Contemporary Tyler School of Art and Architecture at Temple University in Philadelphia, joined the Practical Preservation Podcast to discuss the Vital Signs Project. We covered many things, including:
- Robert’s background as a curator and belief that “culture is something that civilizes us.”
- The history of sign-painting for advertisement purposes, including a color-coded system
- How painted advertisements become “ghost murals,” and how they come to represent the unique history of a neighborhood
- How the Vital Signs Project came into being and led to a collaboration between Temple Contemporary and the Temple Mural Arts Program, professional artists, and art students
- Vital Signs Project’s commitment and dedication to the idea that art can transform society, by providing historic preservation and restoration gratis to give the Philadelphia area’s small businesses a reinstated sense of belonging and a boost the surrounding communities
- Successful completed projects in the Philadelphia area, which have increased business and local morale
- Challenges involved, including work to bring together the right projects and artists, as well as potential projects lost to increasing gentrification in Philadelphia
Contact/Follow:
Email – robert.blackson@temple.edu
Phone – 215-777-9139
Robert shared that interested people can support the Vital Signs Project by nominating small Philadelphia-area businesses in possession of ghost signs, in keeping with the project’s purpose to reinstate businesses in their communities and in turn boost the surrounding community and neighborhood. If interested in proposing a nomination, email or call Robert at the email or number above.
You can also read more about the ghost mural project that started it all, here, and about another project, here
Further reading on sign preservation by the National Park Service can be found here